Petition for Berlin culture launched: budget freeze threatens theaters and operas

Berliner Zeitung Petition for Berlin culture launched: budget freeze threatens theaters and operas Article by Eva Maria Braungart • 3 hours • 1 minute reading time Berlin's cultural workers are worried about the announced austerity measures. Berlin's opera and concert halls as well as other cultural institutions have called for people to sign a petition to protect culture during the budget crisis. The petition is organized by the Berlin State Association of Theater Associations. At the beginning of October, the Senate issued a budget freeze with drastic savings requirements for the next two years. The importance of culture should be the focus of the upcoming discussions on consolidating the overall state budget, according to the initiators of the petition. "Berlin lives from culture," the description of the petition continues. Culture is also the decisive location factor for Berlin. The planned savings "would amount to a clear-cut for culture in Berlin," the initiators continue. The institutionally funded opera, concert and theater houses would be forced to largely suspend the already planned and contractually agreed production and performance operations. Houses organized under private law would face insolvency. The "culture workplace" would be threatened by layoffs and the professional end of many Berliners. The 2025 budget is to be a full three billion euros smaller than the budget for the current year. In two months it will be clear where and how much savings are to be made in the future. There are also to be cuts for 2026 and 2027. Supporters include prominent cultural figures such as the conductor Daniel Barenboim, the comedian and actor Kurt Krömer, the actor Lars Eidinger, the actress Fritzi Haberlandt and the artist Jorinde Voigt. The petition is specifically addressed to the Governing Mayor Kai Wegner (CDU), the Finance Senator Stefan Evers (CDU) and the Culture Senator Joe Chialo (CDU). So far, over 47,000 signatures have been collected.